Crash Bandicoot: The Test of Time
by eternal1990
Summary: Crash is finding himself trapped in the dark. One person is there to guide his way. But can she get to him before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1

**I actually was able to get the prologue written for this new installment much earlier than I thought so I figured; eh why not?**

**This story is no longer going to follow the series as starting with Crash Twinsanity I don't consider them Crash games.**

**Other than that I don't have much else to say expect enjoy I think you all will.**

**Lastly for the Prologue I recommend listening to The Day Seattle Died by Cold**

**Crash Bandicoot and any other related characters or not mine, they belong to whoever has a clue at this point. Any OC's in this story are in fact mine.**

**So let's start**

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Prologue

3 years later

Three long and cold years seemed to dwindle on for Crash Bandicoot.

While everything around him seemed to be the same as it always had been, the now 16 year old marsupial certainly wasn't.

After he defeated his arch nemesis Dr. Neo Cortex for the 4th time, he had seriously Jan before he had escaped unscathed.

While Jan did survive, she decided that it was probably the best thing to leave Crash so she could spare him anymore emotional pain; as she realized that as long as she hung around with Crash, Cortex would still target her.

Although Jan thought that was the best thing, Crash didn't seem to think so; through those three years he completely closed himself off. He stopped talking to a good number of people that he used to know and started hanging with people that he originally never would have thought about.

He was angry and depressed all the time and was lucky if he didn't get into a fight once a month. It was almost safe to say that Crash was no longer the same naïve but kind young boy that had washed up on the shores of N. Sanity beach all those years ago; and the ironic thing about that was, he didn't care.

He was living in world where he couldn't even be who he was; so why bend to the laws of society when he got nothing in return?

The door to the apartment slammed shut when one of the only original friends he had left, Holly, came home from her evening of working at the rock bar.

"Crash! You're still up?!" She asked, rather shocked.

"Why do you care?!" Crash demanded.

"Crash you have school tomorrow; you can't keep staying up like! You need a good night's sleep! You haven't had one of those in 3 years!" Holly cried.

"Why would I want to close my eyes just to relive the nightmares again!" Crash snarled.

"Crash! You're a completely different person; and we're worried about you!"

"Whose worried about me!"

"Me, Sean, our dad, and Aku Aku! You're slipping away, and we don't know what to do!"

"What can be done?! I live in a world where I can't even be myself! I'm a fucking outcast and I've come to terms with that; so why can't you?" Crash demanded, his eyes glassy.

Holly's face softened.

"Crash this isn't who you are; the Crash Bandicoot we knew and loved never talked like this. He never gave up, he never let society bring him down, he stood up for those who couldn't stand up for themselves. That was the Crash Bandicoot we knew; not this cold hard shell that you have become. Please Crash, I don't old you to go away."

Crash looked at her with cold sad eyes.

"I'm sorry Holly, but I do."

The bandicoot walked to the door and grabbed his coat.

"I'm going for walk." He said, quietly.

"Fine." She said, not looking at him.

Crash walked down the stairs.

What was the point of changing when the world around him didn't want to change either?

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	2. Who am I?

**Hey guys! It has been awhile since I updated this fic so I figured get this out now while it's still fresh in your mind.**

**This chapter is rather sad but sometimes that's the way it is.**

**It will get happier soon though.**

**For the first half of this chapter I recommend listening to Whatever You Became by Cold**

**Second half I recommend listening to Possibility by Lykke Li**

**Crash is not mine. Oc's are mine.**

**Enjoy**

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Chapter** 1 Who am I?**

Crash was sitting nonchalantly inside shop class. He really wasn't into building or any of that garbage, but he liked the fact that he got to use destructive tools, so he didn't really complain.

He gazed at the other students; all of them seemed to be getting in the mood, but Crash seemed to scowl at their overall cheerful behavior. Why did they all want to be happy in a world that had nothing darkness all around?

Crash jumped slightly when he felt Elkie touch his shoulder.

The bandicoot turned toward her; he barely talked to her anymore, so why did she want to talk to him all of a sudden?

"You seem depressed." She said, softly.

"Gee how could you tell?!" Crash asked, sarcastically.

"Crash, I may be blind but I am not stupid! You've been wallowing in self loathing for the past 3 three years! You're a completely different person!"

"I DON'T FUCKING CARE!" Crash screamed, jumping in front of the blind girl's face.

Everyone was now staring at him.

"Crash report to the office immediately; your getting more and more out of control!" The teacher demanded, pointing to the door.

Crash gave the teacher the finger before storming out of the classroom.

Elkie stared at the door with numb eyes.

"Crash, what happened to the kind bandicoot that came to my aid three years ago?" She whispered, softly.

"Miss Renner get back to your seat!" The teacher angrily demanded.

The girl sighed in defeat before she slinked back to her seat.

The rest day slowly ticked by until the final bell rang.

Elkie walked to her locker to gather her things; she was more than pleased that the weekend had come. She was distracted that she never noticed Curtis tap her shoulder. She yelped in surprise.

"It's only me." The older male said.

"Oh hi..." She said, quietly.

"You doing anything over the weekend?" He asked.

"I don't know yet." She answered, quietly.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to come to Jersey with me and my sisters this weekend."

Elkie turned her head when she thought she felt Crash's presence nearby.

"Curtis is Crash standing next to me?" She asked, hopefully.

"Why would he be; he hasn't talked to any us, besides Candy and Beau, for three years. So why would he now?"

"I don't know; maybe I was just being hopeful."

"So you gonna come?"

"I'm gonna pass." She said, quietly.

Curtis glared.

"Whatever..." He stormed off.

Elkie glared; he really wasn't any better than his sisters. She then decided to do what she should have done all those years ago... Go and talk to Crash.

Taking her cane she made her way out of the building. She remembered that Crash had moved in with some friends a little farther downtown and decided that it would be the best place to find him.

After about a half an hour Elkie came to the apartment building. Walking inside, she walked over to the front desk.

"Do you know if an orange bandicoot lives here?" She asked.

The man looked at her.

"Yes. There is a bandicoot that lives here. His apartment number is 987."

Elkie nodded her thanks as she made her way to the elevator.

After a short ride, she was on the ninth floor and slowly made her way down the hall. After she found a and ran her fingers along the room number to see that she had found the right apartment.

She knocked on the door loudly.

She heard the clicking of the door and Crash answered.

"Crash it's..."

But he immediately slammed the door right in her face.

Biting her lip she began pounding on the door.

"GO AWAY!" Crash snarled on the on the other side.

"Please let me in!" Elkie begged. "Don't shut everyone away like this!"

"I don't need anybody! I'm fine!" Crash growled.

"That's the problem, Crash! You're not fine! You're even more lonely than you realize!"

No answer.

"Crash... Come out here and talk to me!"

"No..."

"Well if you won't come out, then just listen to me..."

No answer.

"Crash... I know you are feeling a great amount of pain. I know that what had happened to Jan has really hurt you; and I know it's hurting you even more that you have no idea where your sister is... But Crash, you can't close yourself off like this; it's not healthy! There are still many people that are here right now that care about you. Don't you think that's worth something?" The blind girl said, tears flowing down her face.

Crash bit his lip to keep himself from crying, but he couldn't open his mouth to say anything.

"Crash are you listening?" Elkie asked, quietly.

No answer.

Elkie tried to choke back a sob as she came to the realization that Crash was not going to open the door.

"I take it your not going to open the door."

Elkie's words were getting deep into Crash's mind; but he still couldn't speak or move.

"Well I'm sorry Crash; I'm sorry I wasn't there to see how and why you became this way. I guess that's my own fault. I shouldn't have come here... I'm sorry."

Crash swallowed a sob as he could hear the sound Elkie walking away. He wanted to open the door and tell her everything he felt; but all he could do was stand there and do nothing.

Crash knew she was right. He was shutting away the people that were still around that cared about him. All because of his self loathing and guilt.

After about five minutes, Crash finally found the strength to move making his way to the bathroom. He looked in the mirror; he could see himself staring back with his bloodshot eyes. And for a second from the corner of his eyes, he thought he saw a hint of red behind him.

"Jan...?" He asked, looking behind him. Only there was nobody.

The bandicoot breathed heavily; of course Jan wasn't there. Jan was gone and all that was left was her shadow.

"I know you were only trying to do what you thought was best. I know you only did what you what did because you didn't want Cortex to use you to hurt me anymore; but when you left, why did you have to take a large part of me with you?" Crash asked, looking at the ground.

The shadows didn't answer.

"Everything I seemed to be, was taken when you left."

Again there was only silence.

Crash smiled sadly.

"I only wish that wherever you may be, that you're happy. I hope that you've finally taken flight, my flightless bird..."

He looked out the window, it started to rain again. It always seemed to rain.

He looked back into the mirror when he noticed tears streaming down his face; it was first time he had cried in three years.

Jan was gone and he had to except that. He couldn't hold out hope anymore.

"Crash old buddy..." He said to himself the sad smile still on his face. "What's happened to us?"

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	3. Fading In and Out

**Sup People! Here's the next chapter. And the happiness finally comes back. And I also added a little something that ties something together from a previous installment.**

**Also for this chapter I recommend listening to Hold My Hand by Hootie and Blowfish.**

**Crash is not mine. OCs are mine.**

**Enjoy**

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Chapter 2 Fading In and Out

The sun had just risen on that Saturday morning. Crash was already dressed and ready for the day; what was so important to him was that he had to go talk to Elkie. He owed her an apology for snapping at the previous day; she was only trying you to reach out to him.

Crash sighed deeply when he saw he was ready, he even bought the blind girl flowers. He just hoped that was enough.

Crash walked out of his bedroom to see Holly was preparing to go out as well.

"Where are you going?" Crash asked.

"I have to run a few errands before I go to work. You?"

"Out." The bandicoot simply said.

"With flowers?" The older girl smirked.

"What of it?!" Crash demanded, blushing.

"Are those for a girl?" Holly asked, her grin remaining.

Crash glared turning more and more red.

"Shut up!" He whined.

"Okay, I'm sorry... Lover boy!" Holly laughed.

Crash shot her a look.

"All right I'll stop; just stay out of trouble today okay?"

"Yes mother!" Crash said, sarcastically.

Holly grabbed her bag.

"Have fun today." She was gone.

Crash sighed.

"All right Crash old buddy, let's go do this."

The bandicoot walked out of his apartment and into the busy street. The weather was quite warm this morning and Crash had to wonder if he was starting to sweat.

15 minutes passed when he finally made it to her Grandfather's deli that held the apartment upstairs where Elkie leaved with him and her mother.

Crash slowly walked inside to see the old man grinning at him.

"Hi there! What can I get for you?" The man said, with a thick Boston accent.

"Is Elkie here" Crash asked, nervously.

"I'm afraid she's still sleeping; but if you would like to wait, I'll make you something to eat, she should be up soon." The old man said.

Crash sighed before seating himself at the counter.

"I'll wait."

The man smiled.

"I'll make some steak and eggs with toast. That's Elkie's favorite."

Crash grinned.

The bandicoot watched as the man put some descent sized steaks on the small grill.

"So how long have you known Elkie, Crash?"

"About three years... Wait how did you know my name?" Crash asked.

"And where did you learn to ride a motorcycle?" He asked.

"What I never told..."

"You don't remember me, do you; but I remember you Crash."

"I'm sorry but, have we met?"

"Don't you remember? It was 1966 in the middle of route 66. You asked me if you could borrow my motorcycle so that beat a group of punks for some sort of jewel. You won the race."

Crash eyes widened.

"Oh yeah! I remember; you had one sweet ride." Crash grinned, goofily.

The old man smiled. "Yup that bike and I go back a long way."

"Do you still have it?" Crash asked.

"Sure do. Unfortunately I don't ride as much used to; if you'd like I'll give it you."

"I couldn't do that Mr... uh."

"Just call me John." The man said.

"Well John, I can't do that, you barely know me."

"But the way you handles those troublemakers was so badass."

Crash grinned. "You're cool."

The two then heard shuffling upstairs.

"Looks like my Granddaughter's up. She must have smelled breakfast." John chuckled.

Elkie was seen coming down the stairs dressed in some rolled up jeans and a baggy sweatshirt.

"Grandpa I smell steak and... Crash what are you doing here?!" Elkie asked, shocked.

"I came to talk."

Elkie felt a wide smile tug on her face. "You did hear. me." She thought.

"I brought you some flowers." The bandicoot said, handing them to her.

"They smell lovely. Don't they smell lovely, Grandpa?" The blind girl asked.

"They sure do, sweetie. Now come and have some breakfast." John said, placing her plate on the counter.

Elkie rushed to the counter; immediately stuffing her face.

"Look Elkie, I'm sorry I snapped out you yesterday. I was wallowing in my own self pity."

"I understand Crash; I know you miss Jan and your sister very much. I'm glad to see that you're coming back into the light again."

Crash felt the awkward come back onto his face.

"I guess I just needed a little push." He blushed.

Crash looked outside to see the bright sunshine.

"It looks like it's going to be really nice day... You wanna do something with me?" He asked.

Elkie turned a little red.

"Well... I... Sure!" She blushed. "What did you want to do?"

Crash grinned.

"We can whatever you want."

"Just let me change my shirt."

She ran up the stairs.

"Would you declare this a date?" Crash asked Elkie's grandfather.

"Possibly." He chuckled.

Crash grinned nervously.

"Relax and just be yourself."

Elkie returned dressed in a white casual blouse.

"I'm ready to go." She said, shyly.

"Me too..." Crash gulped.

The two walked out.

"Be back in time for dinner!" John called, waving after them.

It was later in the afternoon when Crash was walking along the pier; looking at the view of the city along the water. Elkie was right beside him; using her cane to guide her.

"Did you have fun, today?" Crash asked.

Elkie chuckled.

"Of course I did; I didn't think I could have that much fun browsing through old record stores. Or playing laser tag."

"I'm surprised you kicked my ass so good." Crash grinned.

Eklie grinned slyly.

"I maybe blind, but I have fantastic sense of hearing."

The bandicoot chuckled.

"Hey Crash I know this might not be any of my business, but do you still care about Jan?"

Crash sighed.

"I have thought about her a lot the last three years; but I think I'm ready to let her go. It's clear that she and I can't be together, and I'm not going to dwell on it anymore; not when I have a girl that's here with me right now."

Elkie grinned slightly.

"Gee I never knew that I might that much to you."

Crash blushed. "I guess I just needed to see that."

Elkie looked out towards the city.

"The sun feels so warm... I do wish there were times where I could see it; and sometimes I wish I could see you too."

Crash frowned slightly.

"But you can see better than anyone I know."

"Yeah but... Sometimes its hard just to see nothing but darkness, maybe some faint shadows."

Crash grinned.

"But that hasn't stopped you has it?"

Elkie turned to him; not being able to help the fact that she was grinning.

"I guess it hasn't."

The bandicoot took her hand; but the instant he did a deep shade of red settled on both of their faces.

"I think it's almost time for dinner. Let's head back to the deli." Elkie sighed.

"Can I still hold your hand?" Crash asked.

"Of course you can."

"You wanna run back?"

"Promise you'll hang on tight?"

"I promise."

Crash immediately began to take off running while holding Elkie's hand tightly. The two were nothing but laughs and smiles. And as for Crash in particular; he hadn't felt this good in so long.

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